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Andre Fili Welcomes Calvin Kattar to the UFC at UFC 214

Garnering a checkered record since entering the UFC in 2013, Andre ‘Touchy’ Fili (16-4) studies every fiber of the Octagon’s canvased game board leading into UFC 214 before playing human chess against Calvin ‘The Boston Finisher’ Kattar (16-2).

Originally, Fili was slated to meet the UFC’s latest featherweight sensation, ‘The Korean Superboy’ DooHo Choi. Unfortunately, Choi was scratched from the card, and the idea of ‘Touchy’ sitting on the sidelines when UFC 214 parked inside the heart of the Honda Center in Anaheim, California was a sensitive subject.

Choi is out. Doesn't matter. I'm only focused on what I can control. I'll be ready July 29th to beat someone up.

Having not competed since October 2016, the name standing across from Fili wasn’t nearly as important to him as the warm body. With time winding down to the UFC’s summer blockbuster, Sean Shelby, the promotion’s Matchmaker, rifled through his Rolodex and pulled Kattar from a list of contenders. Fili was nonchalant about Kattar’s eight-fight win-streak and the decade of professional experience under his belt; instead, the heavily tattooed member of Team Alpha Male was only curious whether or not the ink had dried on Kattar’s contract.

Three title fights and a cast of spectacular match-ups on UFC 214’s main card, each of which alone could headline a UFC Pay-Per-View, will capture the attention of the MMA world, and Fili feels that he’s a valuable layer of flare in this deep, talent-rich event.